Harder To Remember Her
by Rusty Weasley
Summary: Draco was originally sorted into Gryffindor, helped Harry and Hermione search and destroy Horcruxes, and he and Hermione were desperately in love and due to get engaged. He learns hard lessons about life, love, and sacrifice as a tragic incident makes him relive his past over and over again. Will he ever get Hermione back, or were they meant to be apart...always?
1. Beginnings: The Final Battle

The Final Battle raged.

"Die, Blood Traitor!" Rodolphus Lestrange shouted as a jet of green light erupted from his wand.

"Oh, fuck off!" Draco said dryly as he dove for cover away from his insane uncle. He sent a Body Bind Curse blindly around the corner, hoping to slow the final Death Eater down long enough to come up with a plan. They were the only ones remaining after a brutal battle in the highest levels of the Clock Tower, and Draco wanted to make sure he was the one that left there alive.

He looked around the corner and noticed that his curse was partially successful, it had not completely encompassed his uncle, but secured his leg to the railings of the suspended catwalk. Stone erupted in a bright blue explosion as Draco ducked his head back around the corner of the wall.

"When I'm finished with you, there will be no more blood-traitor Malfoy's to worry about," Rodolphus shouted.

That incensed Draco. The death of his parents at the hands of his idiot, Death Eater relatives years ago drove him to fight in this horrific war in the first place. His parents had decided not to rejoin the Death Eaters when Voldemort resurfaced, an act they were punished severely for. As the shock of Draco being sorted into Gryffindor instead of Slytherin wore off, they examined what their son meant to them, his happiness, and their family. That one event led to them accepting Draco back into the family, as well as accepting others- a very oppositional view to their cocktail party friends. He had searched out his parent's killers over the years and had dispatched more than his share of Death Eaters today. This uncle was the last one. The images of laughing with his parents at the Manor flashed through his mind as he realized how he could dispatch Rodolphus.

He blasted the supports that held the Clock Tower catwalk aloft, and watched with satisfaction as the hooded death eater finally fell out of sight, unsuccessfully trying to free his imprisoned leg. Draco turned and sprinted down the stairs towards the deafening rumble of the battle below, hoping against all hope that she was still alive. On a landing below he saw an ominous figure hunched over a fallen blonde-haired girl. He angrily cast a silent _Bombardia_ at the broad back of the larger figure. The man actually yelped in pain as he was blasted down the hallway, falling unconscious near the doorway of an abandoned classroom.

He looked down at the body of his classmate. _Lavender Brown_, Draco thought, _or what's left of her._ He noticed the marks on her neck and realized that it must have been a Werewolf he blasted, and now, there was a very real chance that man would regain consciousness soon. He ran down out of the Tower, expecting to find her somewhere near the Great Hall.

He pushed through a throng of students making their way out into the courtyard where the final throes of the Battle of Hogwarts emanated. Over the noise of explosions and screams, he heard a familiar voice call out his name, and his heart soared.

"Draco, Draco!" Hermione called as she ran across the crowded space towards him.

She held the remains of a golden cup in her hands, evidence that she and Ron had been successful in destroying one of the last Horcruxes. However, Draco noticed that she wasn't elated with her obvious victory, and she was alone. Something must have happened to Ron.

Draco took her into his arms as she buried her face into that comfortable place against his shoulder. "Are you ok? Where's Ron?" he asked as he held her tightly against his body.

"He didn't make it," she said quietly. "As soon as I destroyed the cup, the part of Voldemort's soul that was in it caused the Chamber to shake and one of the giant stone supports fell right on Ron and killed him instantly. It was horrible."

"Thank Merlin that you're safe," Draco said as he gently placed one hand under her chin to look into her beautiful brown eyes. "I don't know what I would do without you."

Hermione smiled and kissed him tenderly. "You're stuck with me, mister," she said.

Draco put his hand through her hair and kissed her passionately. He couldn't believe how lucky he was to have Hermione in his life. They had been inseparable almost since the first moment that they were sorted into Gryffindor. They fell into an easy rhythm of studying together since they were the two top students in their year. They attended the Yule Ball together, and had both been celebrated members of the Slug Club. To say that they dated would have been a gross understatement; they were _joined_.

They had been on the hunt for Horcruxes for the last year with Harry, sharing a bunk every night. Draco saved them all from getting caught by Snatchers in the Forest of Dean by Apparating them to his cousin's house in Grimmauld Place. While they hid out for a few hours, he very discretely picked up a velvet box containing a beautiful diamond ring. When this bloody war was over, he was going to ask her to marry him.

He released her from his embrace and said, "I love you."

Hermione smiled up at Draco and said, "I love you too."

Draco saw a flash over her shoulder and felt her shake, grip his shoulders tightly, and then go slack.

"Draco?" she asked weakly as she looked for an answer in his eyes.

In horror, he noticed a bright silver blade sticking out of the front of her chest, and a strange swirling mist of golden flakes fluttering in the air between them. _The Time Turner_, he thought absently as the horror of the situation dawned on him. She went limp, and behind her he saw the horrible smile of Fenrir Greyback, who must have followed him out of the tower and thrown a goblin blade into the woman he loved. Before he could move, or act, the swirling golden mist of Time Turner flakes took over his senses, and everything went out of focus.

Hermione and he had used her Time-Turner before, especially when they wanted a few uninterrupted hours alone, but it had never been as uncontrolled as this. The golden mist turned bright red, as red as the blood that had started flowing out of Hermione's wound, and Draco felt the world start to slip away. Hermione was pulled from his arms, and he saw her form moving and reanimating in front of him. He hoped that they were traveling back to a time when he could save her from this fate, but she remained just out of reach. He moved unnaturally slowly through the nothingness of the swirling red mist, and could almost touch her, but not quite. Tears streamed down his cheeks in anguish as he called out her name, but he could only hear the faintest whisper before everything went dark.

"I love you Draco."

Draco felt a cool sensation against his cheek. After a moment, he realized that he was lying on a cold, wet, marble surface. He put his hands out and felt around, it was a floor. He was lying on the floor, and it was wet from the tears streaming down his face. He touched his face, and it felt smooth…different.

A noise from his left startled him and he pushed up, preparing to attack, when he noticed that the sound was a door opening. As the door opened, light from the hall started to illuminate the room, and Draco instantly realized that he was in his old bedroom at the Manor. He looked around in disoriented amazement. Quidditch posters, children's books, it was certainly his room, _but from when he was a child_.

He focused back on the door as it opened and tensed, wondering what was going on. A younger, more beautiful Narcissa Malfoy stepped into the room and looked directly at her son.

"Draco, honey, did you have a bad dream?" she asked as she walked to where he was crouched on the floor and helped him up.

Draco smiled with a mixture of confusion and relief and hugged his mother tight. He whispered, "You have no idea."

"Let's get you back to sleep, you've got a big day ahead of you," Narcissa said, returning her son's hug warmly.

"What do you mean?" Draco asked as he climbed under the covers of his all-white four-poster bed.

"Later this morning, much later, you catch the Hogwarts Express for your first day at Hogwarts, silly," Narcissa laughed as she tucked him in. "You know that, now close your eyes, sleepyhead."

Draco smiled back at his mother as she kissed him on the forehead and left the room, shutting the door behind her.

As soon as he heard her steps retreating down the hallway, he jumped up and started pacing.

_What the hell just happened? One minute I'm in the heat of battle, and the next I'm back home._ He paced around his room looking for a clue, or something that would help him makes sense of this nightmare. As he looked through the papers on his desk, he came across his letter from Hogwarts. He was scheduled to get on the train in a few hours. He sat down hard in his desk chair and ran his hands through his now-shorter blond hair. _What is the last thing I remember? Hermione floating just out of reach, a red mist, no wait, gold. The golden mist came from the Time Turner. It broke apart just as that blade pierced Hermione's…_

As realization washed over him, he put his hands up to his face to stifle the anguish of his scream. _Hermione was dead. _He put his head down on his desk and sobbed. After a few moments of heartache, he sat straight up. _No she wasn't. She wasn't dead at all. She was probably reviewing Hogwarts: A History one more time before she got ready for her first day at Hogwarts._

The thought of Hermione, with all her bushy hair, sitting on her bed in a cotton nightgown, anxiously awaiting her first day at school cheered him up. He went over to his trunk, and started taking everything out and examining the contents through the lens of experience. He needed more sweaters and less dress shoes. He should take something to make a good first impression with Hermione. Sweets would be good for Ron and Harry. There was so much to think about; not only was he going to reintroduce himself to his best friends, he needed to protect them, and everyone, from Lord Voldemort. If he acted quickly, he could stop the war from happening before anyone was the wiser. He could save his parents.

Two hours later, his trunk topped off with a bottle of Felix Felicis that has father had given him for Christmas, and an ancient copy of _The Moste Truthful Stories of the Founders_ for Hermione, Draco heard a tapping at his bedroom door.

Dobby sheepishly peeked around the door and entered, Draco raced over to the little house-elf and picked him up into an enormous hug.

"Dobby!" he laughed out loud, "I forgot all about you!"

Dobby cocked his small head to one side, examining the giant smile of his master. "Is the young Master feeling well?" he asked.

"Dobby, we are going to get it right this time," Draco said to the confused House-elf.

He sat down at breakfast an hour later, freshly scrubbed and ready to go to school, chewing quietly as his parents stared at him. He had spoken of nothing other than Hogwarts for the past few days, and frankly they were looking forward to having him out of the house until the holidays. However, this morning his behavior was very different. He was quiet, and oddly enough, had asked for black coffee with his sausage and eggs.

"Father," Draco said, "would you still love me if I was sorted into Gryffindor tonight?

Lucius nearly spit out his tea. "What?"

"We all expect that I will be sorted into Slytherin as our family has been for generations. However, what if I were to be sorted into Gryffindor? Would you still love me, or would you disown me, never let me return home, that sort of thing?" Draco asked earnestly. "Family is the most important thing to me and I want to know that you stand behind me, no matter what."

"Draco, no more of this nonsense. Yesterday, all you could talk about were your plans after joining your friends in Slytherin, and now you want to know if I will continue to love you if you become a Gryffindor? I believe we both know what this is son. Fear. Don't worry, I have the greatest faith that you will be a Slytherin like your mother and I, and if not, I will make some calls on your behalf, " Lucius said proudly.

Draco took a long drink from his coffee mug. Narcissa noticed that there was something different about his eyes. He looked older, tired.

"Draco, is there something you want to tell us?" she asked.

"Mother, I have no idea where to start," Draco said as he put down his mug, "but you are going to have to trust me, both of you."

Lucius laughed, "Those are grave words from such a young man."

Draco studied his father silently, realizing that he was right. No one would believe him at all. No normal person anyway. There were only a few people he could confide in, and his parents were not included. He realized that one of the most important things he could do would be to insulate them from all of this. He loved them beyond measure, and there was no way that he could trust them yet. Lucius was still going to disown him tomorrow when he woke up in his four-poster bed in Gryffindor. "My apologies, father," Draco said as he took his plate to the kitchen.

His parents looked at each other, confused and just a little uneasy.

Back in his room, making the last preparations to leave, Draco closed the lid on his trunk, startled to see Dobby staring at him.

"Master Draco has changed," Dobby said.

"Yes Dobby, I have, but I can't tell you anything. I need to protect you as well."

Dobby smiled and became teary, "Young master would want to protect Dobby?"

"Dobby, you are part of my family, and I care for you," Draco said.

Dobby let out a long wail and slammed his head on the lid of the trunk, "Dobby is not worthy of affection, young master. Dobby is only a humble servant who…"

"Dobby, I command you to stop crying this instant," Draco interrupted calmly as he stood. "I am going to need you for some important missions while I am at Hogwarts. These are things that only you can do, because you have such powerful magic."

Dobby looked curiously into Draco's eyes.

"I know some things that I can't tell you, things I won't tell you because I know that you are bound to tell my father anything he wishes. So let me just say that there are times I will call for you and I need you to come find me, no matter where I am," Draco paused as he thought. "If for some reason you can't come to me, because you are busy with my parents, or are forbidden for some reason, you have to send another House-elf somehow, do you understand? It may be a matter of life or death, and I will need help. Am I clear?'

Dobby nodded his head, "I understand young master. I will listen for your call."

"Thank you," Draco said as he walked towards the door of his room.

Dobby sent Draco's trunk downstairs with a casual wave of his hand and said, "Interesting."

As the Hogwarts Express pulled out of the station, carrying its cargo of hopeful students, Draco stopped waving to his parents, and slung his satchel over his shoulder.

"Draco, let's sit in here," Gregory Goyle said as he gestured to the doorway of a car full of pure-blood children, obviously destined for Slytherin.

"Listen," Draco said to his childhood friend, "you go ahead. I have some things to do. We'll catch up later."

Goyle shrugged and went into the Slytherin car.

Draco turned in the opposite direction and walked up the aisle. He peered into each one until he found, about 3 cars forward, a dark-haired boy sitting alone.

He recognized his friend instantly and started to smile. Hermione told Draco years ago about how she, Ron, and Harry met on the train to Hogwarts, and he was excited knowing she would be joining them soon. He stopped smiling when he realized that they weren't supposed to have met yet, and he shouldn't act too familiar.

"Sorry, everything's full up, do you mind if I join you?" Draco asked.

"Fine by me," Harry responded with a smile.

"My name's Draco."

"I'm Harry. Harry Potter."

Draco smiled. "The Harry Potter? The boy-who-lived? Wow, I've heard so much about you." He laughed inwardly at how he could have fun with this. Knowing the future did have some advantages.

Ron joined them a few moments later, and after that, the three boys were eating a sample of each of the sweets off the trolley. Draco held his breath as he anticipated what came next.

She slid the door open as she asked if anyone had seen a lost toad. Draco froze as he studied her. She was beautiful, even as an uppity, immature, eleven year old. He knew that her haughtiness was because of her feelings of insecurity, and she was destined to have a tough time in her first year. He would eventually befriend her in the library, the only place he felt safe from Slytherins that thought him a blood traitor.

"You know," Draco started, "Magical toads have a way of finding their owners. I wouldn't worry too much about it. Why don't you join us? We have loads of sweets here."

Hermione smiled at Draco. "I promised this boy I would help him out, and I was sitting in another car, and need to get out my robes," she paused and considered his invitation seriously.

"Oh, are you going to do some magic?" she asked Ron.

Draco involuntarily recoiled as he saw the rat Ron had on his lap. _Scabbers. Pettigrew. I should kill him now, that son of a bitch. _

"Say, are you all right? You look kind of funny," Harry asked.

"Yeah," Draco responded. "I just don't like rats."

"I get that," Ron said. "I don't like spiders."

"Say, do you mind if I try something?" Draco asked. I know a pretty cool trick.

"This ought to be interesting," Hermione said as she closed the door of the compartment.

Draco held his wand out and said, "_Revelio!"_

The spell was imperfect, Draco knew instantly. He thought that it might be due to his age, or the newness of his wand, but something didn't feel right.

"Bloody Hell!" Ron screamed as Scabbers partially transformed into a man.

Peter Pettigrew shook his head quickly to change it completely into human form and stared at Draco. "How could you possibly know?"

"Give it up Pettigrew," Draco said defiantly as he held up his wand. "You're going to Azkaban."

"Like Hell I am," Pettigrew shouted as he hit Draco in the throat and compressed his windpipe instantly.

Draco, stunned, fell to the floor and dropped his wand. He couldn't breath, and clutched at his throat in panic. Pettigrew calmly picked up Draco's wand and pointed it casually at the three other children in the compartment.

_Children, that is what we are._ Draco thought._ I had no business attacking him, now look what I've done._

Pettigrew looked at Draco, now turning blue, on the floor. "Stupid kid," he said as a jet of green light ended Draco's life.

Draco instantly felt the red mist surround him. The scene in the train compartment vanished like the ending of a stored memory in a Pensieve. He was floating, weightless through and endless darkness. This time longer than before. He thought he could almost hear voices, just out of earshot. He tried to call out, but his own voice seemed so far away. Slowly, as though time didn't exist, a form started to materialize around him. He watched as the red mist coalesced into the shape of a person, then finally becoming Hermione, not the eleven year old that he had just seen on the train, but the Hermione that he loved and wanted to marry. He reached out for her, but couldn't touch her. She was just inches from his fingertips and there was no way to move in this weightless environment. All he could do was look at her, and that seemed like enough. She smiled at him sadly, knowingly, he thought.

"Are we dead?" he asked, although no sound came out.

Hermione shrugged silently and shook her head slightly. It was obvious that she didn't know anymore than he did.

"I love you," Draco said.

Hermione mouthed the words, "I love you too," as she blew him a kiss.

Draco felt a cool sensation against his cheek. After a moment, he realized that he was lying on a cold, wet, marble surface. He put his hands out and felt around, it was a floor. He was lying on the floor, and it was wet from the tears streaming down his face. _Not again,_ he thought.


	2. Troll in the Dungeon

**A/N: I don't own any of this content and write solely for some sort of uncontrolled artistic relief. This story is a sad one, and this is just the second chapter.**

His mother tucked him into bed.

He got up and repacked his trunk

He had breakfast with his parents. They had no idea that anything was different, except he was very quiet. They thought he was nervous, but that still didn't explain the three cups of black coffee.

When he closed the lid of his trunk, Dobby stared back at him.

"Young Master Draco is different," Dobby said.

"Yes," Draco answered.

"Should Dobby still wait for Young Master to call?"

"What? Do you remember me telling you that?" Draco asked, shocked. "How can you remember something that was said in a different time?"

"Dobby doesn't remember, but Dobby _understands_."

Draco stared hard at the House-elf. "Dobby, I can't explain everything, because you might be forced to tell my father, but I am not what I seem. I'm from a different time. A time years from now. There are so many things that are different, I can't begin to explain, but I know I need you. I should have called you last time. I don't know what to do now," Draco said, staring at the contents of the trunk.

"Sir," Dobby started, "why don't you ask for help? Help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it."

Draco thought for a moment. "That's it Dobby; I need to tell Dumbledore. He'll be able to sort it all out." Draco grabbed the small journal that he had been scribbling notes in the night before. "I've got it all here. Pettigrew, the Horcruxes, Quirrell, Harry, everything. He's got to understand."

When Goyle asked him to sit in the Slytherin car, Draco agreed. The thought of facing Pettigrew again was too much. _Dumbledore could sort that one out as well_, he thought.

The Slytherins were repulsive. Pansy Parkinson continually boasted about Slytherin House's Pure-blood status, while Marcus Flint made derogatory comments about Gryffindor and Hufflepuff. Crabbe and Goyle sat dumbly, nodded their heads and snacked.

Draco quietly rose and left the car.

As he walked forward on the train, he realized that although he didn't have the stomach to face Ron and his pet rat again, that didn't mean he couldn't see Hermione. He figured that there was still time before she was due to meet Harry and Ron, so that meant that she was in one of the cars nearer the front, presumably near Neville and his soon-to-be-lost toad.

Draco passed by the compartment where Harry and Ron were meeting each other for the first time. He walked further until he came to the Honeydukes Express sweets trolley and purchased a Cauldron Cake, which he put into his pocket. In a different car, he came to a compartment containing about six first-year girls. He smiled inwardly watching them laughing and gesturing to one another, but as he slowed down to look more carefully, he saw that there was one girl that wasn't laughing and having fun. She was holding a book in front of her face, all he could really see was her bushy hair. _Hermione._

On closer inspection, he noticed that the girls were laughing and pointing at the girl behind the book. Her hand moved to her eye to wipe away a tear. He couldn't stand for that. _Why didn't she tell me that the other girls tormented her?_ His blood began to boil at the thought of these girls making _his_ Hermione cry. He slid the door open with a bang, and simultaneously realized he had no plan, no plan at all. He couldn't just tell them to stop harassing a girl he wasn't supposed to know, or could he?

"What's going on here?" Draco said imperiously.

Romilda Vane looked up at Draco and the smile drained from her face. "You're Draco Malfoy."

"Yes. So what?"

"Were just getting to know this Mudblood," Romilda said defiantly.

"How dare you call her that?" Draco shouted, incensed.

Romilda looked confused. "I never thought a Malfoy would stand up for her kind."

"She's about to be your classmate for the next seven years. As far as we know, she could be the brightest witch of our age, or even save all our lives. Did you ever think about that, Vane?" Draco realized that he might have crossed a line by mentioning Romilda's last name, since he wasn't really supposed to know her, but he was shocked to find that a soon-to-be-Gryffindor was actually a Pure-blood arse.

"You," Draco said to the girl hiding behind the book. "Come with me, I need your help. There is a student that has lost something on the train, and I think you can help him."

Hermione lowered the copy of _Hogwarts: A History_, and looked at Draco. Her eyes were a little puffy from crying, but he could tell how thankful she was to get out of that compartment with some dignity. She slid her book into her bag, and Draco held the door for her. After she left, he slammed it closed.

"Thank you," Hermione said.

"You don't deserve that," Draco responded. "That is a stupid and archaic way of thinking."

"I don't understand, what does Mudblood mean?" Hermione asked.

Draco stopped in the middle of the train corridor. He didn't want to be the one to tell this innocent girl about how she was different than people like Romilda Vane, Pansy Parkinson, and him. How could he soften the blow somehow? He pulled the Cauldron Cake out of his pocket and pulled off a piece for her.

"Here, try this. It's a Cauldron Cake," Draco said as he handed over the piece.

Hermione took the piece and tried it. She nodded her head as she chewed. "It's tasty, but you didn't answer my question."

"Well, a Pure-blood wizard is one that believes that he has no non-magic, or Muggles, in his bloodline. A Mudblood is a derogatory term for someone that has dirty blood, or in your case is a Muggle. Romilda and the other girls were making fun of you for being from a non-wizarding family, though I'm sure that there were some girls in there hiding the fact that they have Muggle ancestors."

"So, it's a form of racism then," Hermione stated. "I'm being singled out because I'm different and I don't belong." Her eyes started welling up again.

Draco tentatively put a hand on her shoulder. "Hermione, believe me, you do belong. That stuff I said about being the brightest witch of our age, it's true. You will be. You're bloody amazing." Draco smiled at her as he finished, but looking into her eyes, he realized he made a mistake.

"Wait. I never told you my name. How do you know anything about me at all? I don't understand." Hermione backed away and looked down as she thought. "Are you a Seer?" she asked.

Draco smiled weakly, as he realized that she had given him an out. "Honestly, I don't know what I am. Listen, I'd appreciate it if you didn't say anything about my gift. I don't really want everyone to know that I can see into the future."

"You can see into the future?" she asked incredulously.

"Yep, and I can prove it if you want, but you have to promise not to say anything about it, " Draco said seriously.

"Prove it," Hermione said.

"Ok. In a few minutes, a boy named Neville Longbottom is going to ask you for help finding his lost toad. The toad's name is Trevor."

"Fake," Hermione said. "You already asked me to come help a student find something. It could just be that there is this boy asking everyone for help and you figure he'll find me sooner than later."

"You'll go looking for the toad, and meet some boys named Ron and Harry."

"I'll probably meet everyone eventually."

"Ok," Draco said as he thought for a moment. "While you're with Ron and Harry, Ron will try to do a spell on his pet rat, and it will fail."

"That's not much is it? I mean, we haven't started school yet, the likelihood of one of us doing a spell correctly is slim," Hermione said with a condescending smile.

Draco looked at her closely; he could see how much growing she had to do. That condescension was not particularly appealing, but he knew that she was just thinking rationally, not trying to be off-putting. He smiled and then said, "Hermione Jean Granger, daughter of two dentists, will be sorted into Gryffindor tonight, along with Ron Weasley, Harry Potter, and myself. You and I will become close friends as we will be the top two students in our year. I'll leave it at that for now, I don't want to burden you with too much knowledge, it is going to be a tough secret for you to keep."

Hermione scoffed. "I'm sure there is a logical explanation for all of this, and we'll see if your predictions come true."

"Absolutely. When we are sitting together in the Great Hall tonight, you let me know if I got it right. Until then, stay away from those girls and get looking for that toad."

On cue, Neville Longbottom turned the corner and said, "Have either of you seen a toad?"

Hermione turned sharply to face Draco, who bowed dramatically, turned back towards the Slytherin car, and left Hermione to face her adventures and keep wondering about the boy she just met.

Draco wondered if he had made a tactical error. While he could fake being a seer easily, was that something he wanted to do? Certainly people would find out. Would this affect his relationship with Hermione? Would something happen to him, making this timeline reset again? He couldn't handle the thought of having to watch every step he made, he would just hope that Dumbledore could sort it all out, and he and Hermione could continue like before. Maybe a Chocolate Frog would help, he thought as he approached the trolley again.

Draco thought that the Hat would have taken more time, or at least expressed some astonishment at all that was locked up in his head. The first time he had been sorted, the Hat had explained its decision to put him in Gryffindor. This time, there was no discussion, just an instantaneous announcement that Draco Malfoy would be in Gryffindor.

Hermione was the first one to start clapping over the deafening silence that resulted from the Sorting Hat's announcement, and she slid over to allow him to sit. "Well done," she said.

"Do you believe me now?" Draco asked.

"Lucky guess?" she answered.

"Well then slide over, because Potter is up next."

Hermione watched as Harry sat under the Hat for a few moments before it announced, "Gryffindor!"

As their first meal at Hogwarts progressed, Draco found that he fell into a natural rhythm with Harry and Hermione. Although the Slytherins stared daggers at him, and the other Gryffindors eyed him warily, he felt right at home. He confidently strode up the stairs to the Gryffindor common room, and instead of the wonder and fascination shared by the other First Years, he looked around like he was coming home again. They went to their rooms and Draco instantly sat on his four-poster and looked around at his roommates. He and Harry were getting along fine, Ron would come around eventually, but he knew that he and Neville were going to have a long road ahead of them. Neville would eventually confide in him that he blamed the Malfoy family and all of the other Death Eaters for his parent's fate. Draco knew that it wouldn't be wise for him share what was going on in Neville's head, but that didn't mean that he couldn't make it all a little easier.

He noticed Neville looking out of the corner of his eye at him as they got into their pajamas for bed. Draco figured that this was an opportune time to make a gesture, and he reached deep into his trunk and pulled out a box.

"Hey Longbottom," Draco said as he walked across the room with the box in his hands. He noticed that Neville was tense, and a little afraid. Draco's heart went out to this boy as he thought about all the baggage that he was carrying around. "Listen, I know that you don't trust me or my family, and you've got good reasons not to." Draco smiled as he saw Neville's eyebrows shoot up. He sat casually on Neville's bed and held out the wooden box. "I just wanted to give you something to show that I'm not like them."

"What is it?" Neville asked tentatively. He took the box from Draco and opened the top. He smiled as he looked inside.

"It's not much, a gesture really," Draco said.

Neville removed the small plant from the box and put it on his bedside table. Harry and Ron, who had been watching the exchange from across the room, joined the pair.

"What is it?" Ron asked.

"It's a Flitterbloom," Draco said. It's related to Devil's Snare, which doesn't like sunlight, but it is harmless. I find the swaying branches soothing."

They all watched the little plant for a moment. Its tendrils moved gently, like there was a light breeze blowing through the room.

"She was right," Neville said as he looked over at Draco.

"What?" Ron asked.

"That girl I met on the train, Hermione. She said he was a Seer."

"What's a Seer?" Harry asked. Everything having to do with the magical world was still new to him.

Draco stood up. "A Seer is a fortune teller, someone that can see the future," he said as he waved his hands around for comic effect. "Real ones are quite rare, actually."

"Go on then," Ron said. "Are you one or not?"

Draco paused. He thought that he actually needed to sit down and work out some sort of plan because this Seer business was really moving along quickly. He then had another idea.

"Look, I'm eleven. I don't know everything. None of us do. So I can tell what is going to happen sometimes, I'm sure that everyone has some secret, right? Something that they aren't sure they want everyone to know?"

The three boys looking anywhere other than at him spoke volumes.

"Right then, let's forget about fortune telling," Draco said as he walked back to his trunk. "Weasley, this is for you, no ceremony needed." He tossed a package of Sugar Mice candy to Ron who grinned broadly and sat on his bed to crack into the package.

"Let's see here Potter," Draco started.

"You didn't have to give me anything," Harry started. "I mean I didn't get anything for you, I didn't know…"

"Potter, this isn't some tradition you're missing. I'm just trying to make a good first impression…ah here it is," Draco said as he pulled the golden ball out and tossed it to Harry. "It's called a Snitch, and it goes with a game called Quidditch that I think you'll enjoy a lot."

"Thanks," Harry said as he turned the ball over in his hands.

"Weasley, I think you're the best man to instruct Harry about Quidditch, I get the feeling he'll be quite good at it." Draco grabbed up his kit and left the room to go brush his teeth. As he walked through the door, he smiled to himself as he heard Neville.

"Well, that 's something you don't see every day, a Malfoy being pleasant."

Days passed.

Weeks passed.

He still couldn't get an audience with Dumbledore. He had tried all of the passphrases he could think of to gain access to the Headmaster's office. After meals he tried to approach him, and although Dumbledore acted pleasant, he could not get a private audience. Draco even asked Professor McGonagall to intervene, and when she politely declined, he raised his voice and started talking about Horcruxes.

He realized the problem when she sent him immediately from her office. _He was a Malfoy._ People expected the worst from him. Talking about Horcruxes, before they were ready to hear about them, was a mistake. No wonder Dumbledore wouldn't see Draco, he probably thought he'd been sent to kill him.

He decided to do _good._ For the next few weeks, he treated people with respect and used his influence to help people. He encouraged Harry to try out for the Quidditch team and introduced him to Oliver Wood. He stood up for Neville whenever he could, and he treated Hermione like a princess.

She wasn't used to it. Attention from boys was not on her radar for her first year at Hogwarts. She had loads of reading to do, and getting butterflies in her stomach every time that attractive blond boy sat next to her in the Library was too much. When she excused herself to go back to the Common Room to study, he would turn up there again. Really, it was starting to get annoying, but she couldn't help herself, she loved to look at him. He caught her eye a few times and she was completely embarrassed. He talked to her more than the other boys, more than anyone really, and she felt that he really understood her. It couldn't be any of that Seer nonsense really, he was just more…attentive. It was late October by the time Hermione realized that she had a crush on Draco. One day he was late to their usual meeting time in the Library, and she found herself looking for him, wanting to see him. _OK, this was getting serious._

Dumbledore had witnessed a Malfoy being good. In the Great Hall, two Slytherins had been teasing Neville about his apparent ineptitude in Defense Against the Dark Arts, and Draco stepped right in front of Neville and stared the two larger boys down. Dumbledore put his soup spoon down, and leaned over to Professor McGonagall and said, "Tell Mister Malfoy that I will see him in my office on Friday night."

The day that Draco was late to the Library, Professor McGonagall kept him after Transfiguration class to tell him of his appointment with the Headmaster. He was overjoyed when he finally arrived in the Library that day. He plunked his books on the table, startling Hermione out of her reading.

"Hermione, I have great news," Draco said.

Hermione stared up into those steel-blue eyes and lost herself for a moment, consumed by those infernal butterflies again. "Oh really, what would that be?" she choked out.

"Dumbledore has agreed to meet with me," Draco said.

"That's great news, I guess," she answered. "You never really told me what you wanted to talk to him about. Saving the Wizarding World?"

"It's complicated, but yeah, I know some things that would help him."

"Ok," she said, knowing that this discussion would lead nowhere again. She had tried and tried to get him to tell her about what was so urgent about seeing Dumbledore, but he never budged. The most she learned was that it had something to do with that Seer nonsense. "When is your meeting?"

"Friday night," Draco answered.

"Oh," Hermione said looking down at her book.

"What?" Draco asked.

"Nothing."

"I know that look," Draco started. "You look like that when you're upset about something."

"How do you know that I have a look? I don't have _a look_," Hermione said indignantly.

Draco just raised one eyebrow in that annoying, but oh-so-attractive way.

"Fine, I was hoping that we could go to the Halloween Feast together."

"Sure, we can go together," Draco answered.

'But there is a dance afterwards," Hermione said tentatively.

Draco instantly grabbed up both of her hands and looked her right in the eye, "Hermione Granger, will you go to the Halloween Dance with me? I'll be a few minutes late, but I promise I won't be long. I'll just wow him with some facts and be right back for the dance, I promise."

Hermione laughed, "Fine, you silly boy, you can be a little late. Maybe I can dance with Ron and Harry until you get back."

"Ok, I'll be _really_ fast then," Draco said with a smile.

Hermione smiled in return and went back to her reading. She had made up her mind to tell Draco how she felt. She liked him, maybe more than as a friend.

The Halloween Feast was incredible. The students had never seen the Great Hall decorated so festively and the food was delicious. Plate after plate of treats and candies appeared on their tables. Ron couldn't speak for constantly cramming something into his mouth. Draco had been careful not to mention anything about how the food at Hogwarts was prepared, because he wanted to delay Hermione's campaign for House-elf rights as long as possible. The whole room was full of joyous laughter, and Draco looked around to take it all in.

When dessert appeared, Draco started to get a little nervous. _What if Dumbledore doesn't believe me? I don't really have a back-up plan. How long I can keep avoiding Quirrell? Is there really a chance that I can save us all from Voldemort? Everyone could just grow up normally and live happily-ever-after._

"Draco, are you alright?" Hermione asked quietly.

"Sure," he answered. "Just nervous."

"Dumbledore is looking at you, I think you're on," she said.

Draco looked up at the head table and met Dumbledore's eyes. The old man nodded imperceptibly and gestured to the door off the end of the table. Draco stood and put his napkin next to his plate.

"I'll see you in a little while," Draco said to Hermione.

She felt those butterflies again. "Ok, I'll see you."

"Oi, what was that all about?" Ron asked when Draco left, his mouth finally empty.

"Nothing," Hermione answered.

"You don't think he likes you, do you?" Ron asked.

"Ron," Harry chided, "what's up with you?"

"It just makes sense, doesn't it?" Malfoy is really pretty cool, and good looking, and he could have any girl he wanted. "Why would he want…her?"

That hurt. Hermione thought Ron was a friend, but she realized that he was just a dumb boy. A dumb boy that pointed out that she wasn't very pretty, and she suddenly felt very stupid for liking Draco. Of course he wouldn't like her in that way. Her face felt very hot, and her eyes welled up with tears. She abruptly got up from the table and headed out of the Hall very quickly. She turned the corner and went into the girl's bathroom to have a good cry.

"Why don't you have a seat, Draco?" Professor Dumbledore asked.

"I'm sorry sir, I promised Hermione that I would hurry back for the dance," Draco admitted.

"That's quite alright, Draco," Dumbledore said. "That is what you should be thinking about, not ominous messages for me."

"But sir, I need to warn you. Professor Quirrell is under Voldemort's control right now. Voldemort wasn't destroyed that night in Godric's Hollow. He created seven Horcruxes, including Harry Potter himself. The only way to stop him is to destroy all the Horcruxes while he is still weak and attached to Quirrell's head." Draco took a breath. "I know you still need proof. I know that Professor Snape is working with you as a double agent, because he mourns the Death of Harry's mother."

Dumbledore fell silent and looked at Draco. Draco knew that he was reading his thoughts, and didn't try to use Occlumency. This was probably a faster way than explaining everything.

Dumbledore stood and walked to the door of his office. "Draco, I think this is best kept between us for now. Do you understand?"

"Yes sir, I do. Do you think you can stop him?"

"If what you know is true, and we can find and destroy those Horcruxes, then yes. But for now, let's rejoin the party to not draw any suspicion. Tomorrow is just as good a time to start."

Draco and Dumbledore walked in through the side door, just in time to see Professor Quirrell running down the aisle in his purple turban.

"Troll in the dungeons! Troll in the dungeons! Thought you ought to know," Quirrell said as he fainted to the floor.

Dumbledore started barking orders as Draco scanned the Gryffindor table for Hermione. Ron and Harry were standing together in the room full of panicked children, but she wasn't there.

Halloween.

Troll.

Girl's Bathroom.

Draco ran at top speed down the aisle, pushing his way through the throng of classmates. They were panicking and slowing him down. How would he ever get to her in time?

"Dobby! I need you!" Draco shouted.

In a moment, the House-elf appeared by his side. "Young Master called?" Dobby asked.

"Dobby you have to get me to the Girl's lavatory on the first floor. Hermione is in trouble and we've got to save her," Draco shouted, causing several startled students to stare.

Dobby grabbed Draco's hand and snapped his fingers. They Disapparated.

The scene in the bathroom was terrible, water pooled on the floor from the smashed sinks and broken pipes. The mirrors were shattered and the stalls themselves were splintered. Hermione was curled up in a corner sobbing, but something about the way she was positioned was disturbing. As Dobby held out his hands, casting some sort of elf magic to freeze the enormous Troll, Draco noticed blood on the Troll's club. He looked towards Hermione as he raced over to her in the corner. Blood was mixing with the water on the floor, and as he got closer he saw that she was bent all wrong. She was broken down one side, evidently where the club had smashed her.

"Hermione, stay still. We'll get you to the infirmary where they can fix you all up," Draco said, his eyes welling with tears. "Just stay with me, don't leave me again."

"Again?" Hermione croaked, a stream of blood coming from her mouth. She was whimpering now, too spent to cry.

"Yes, again," Draco said through the tears. He put his arm around her to comfort her a little, and felt the blood soaking the back of her shirt from an enormous head wound. "Oh Hermione," Draco said softly.

"Dobby, we need help! Can you take us to St. Mungo's?" Draco cried out.

Before Dobby could answer, Draco felt Hermione go slack, and the red mist started to form again. His cry of anguish was cut off as the scene before him dissolved and he was plunged into blackness again.


	3. Fiendfyre

**A/N: I claim no ownership of the story or characters. Just writing a little sad story. Not sure exactly how many chapters are left at this point. I'd like to finish it in one or two more.**

This time, when Narcissa entered the room, Draco had already pushed up off the floor and was sitting up against the foot of his bed.

"Draco, did you have a bad dream?" Narcissa asked.

"I wish," Draco said as he wiped his eyes.

Narcissa knelt down, and swept up her silk robe, although it provided little protection against the cool marble floor. "Tell me about it," she said.

Draco paused and looked at his mother. He rationalized that in less than four years she would be dead, killed by her own brother in law. Hermione would die a few years later, and who knows whether Voldemort won or lost the final battle. He had been making bad decisions, and didn't know why he kept failing when he knew the answer to destroying Voldemort. _How many times do I have to watch Hermione die?_ He weighed his decision, and then decided to tell his mother everything.

The sun started to cast a glow throughout the darkened bedroom as Draco finished his tale. His mother sat speechless, never saying a word, sometimes crying silently as he recounted his adventures, his loss, her own death, and the secret of Harry Potter. As he spoke he realized that even if his mother told Lucius and they went and murdered Harry tonight in a crazed, Death Eater romp, he would just need to jump off of his broomstick a few hundred meters up, and end up back here again. She put her hand to her mouth when he spoke of taking the engagement ring from Grimmauld Place, and how Hermione died for the first time in his arms. The crying had stopped and she was solemn by the time Draco explained how he had entered this room again.

He waited for her to speak. She sat still for a few moments, looking at the ceiling, lost in thought. Draco wondered what was going through her mind. She seemed to believe him; the details, history, and answers to mysteries were just too compelling to ignore, however, on the surface he was just an eleven-year-old boy.

Narcissa stood and said just one word, "Dobby."

The House-elf appeared instantly. "Mistress called for Dobby?"

"Dobby, what do you know about the events Draco has been going through? You seem to understand something that neither he nor I do. Tell me everything you know about this," Narcissa said.

Dobby looked at Draco and tilted his head slightly, reminding Draco of Crookshanks' quizzical looks when Draco used to try and get him to play with a bit of string or an enchanted origami bird in the Gryffindor common room.

"Mistress, the bond between House-elf and family is strong. We anticipate what you need, we understand what is in your heads so we can serve better. I understand that Master Draco is different than he was last night...he is more, though he looks unchanged," Dobby said as he continued to look at Draco.

"I understand now," Narcissa said. "Draco, Dobby has some Legilimens ability, and that is how he was able to recognize that you said something to him...the previous time. As to his ability to Apparate into Hogwarts, that should come in handy this morning."

"This morning?" Draco asked.

"Yes dear. Get dressed; Dobby is taking us to see Dumbledore after breakfast. I have to go wake your father," and with that, Narcissa swept from the room, full of purpose.

Lucius sat numb during breakfast as Narcissa recounted Draco's story. Draco realized that his mother believed him, but he was surprised at how passionate she was to go get Dumbledore's help.

"So what you're saying dear," Lucius drawled, "is that our eleven-year-old son had a magical accident in the future, and knows all of the Dark Lord's secrets, thus ensuring his downfall?"

"Yes, and if we can go to Dumbledore now, we can stop him," Narcissa urged.

Lucius sat silently for a moment, then calmly said, "I don't think so."

Draco was amazed that he hadn't thought of it himself. Of all the people that could defeat the Dark Lord and stop the Death Eaters, his parents were actually the best suited.

"And we start," Lucius said as he dropped Tom Riddle's diary on the table. "We will work swiftly, yes, but most of all we need to be cautious. Draco, if what you say is true, the lives that we will save are enormous."

Draco paused for a moment. His father had taught him to be a Slytherin; always cunning, and looking out for oneself at all times. There weren't many lessons he could remember about saving thousands of lives. "You want to be Minister of Magic," he blurted out.

Lucius smiled, "What's the good in saving the Wizarding World if they don't appreciate you for it? The Daily Prophet will have a field day with this story once we prove that Voldemort is indeed alive, and we have the keys to bringing him down. The Boy Who Lived will be a distant memory."

"He's a Horcrux too, father," Draco said, "and he's my friend."

"Dear, you're starting to sound like a Gryffindor," Narcissa said.

"I am a Gryffindor!" Draco shouted as he stood from the table. "You have to understand my history. I will be sorted into Gryffindor tonight and you will disown me. I'll spend all my holidays and summer breaks alone, and then you'll be killed by Death Eaters. My best friends are Harry Potter and Hermione Granger, and they were the only ones that treated me like real family. You have to guarantee their safety, or I'm not going through with this."

"Guarantee is a word I don't take likely, son," Lucius said.

"Take it or leave it," Draco said. "I will not lose them again."

"Yes, interesting isn't it?" Lucius started. "If something happens to either you or the girl, then you end up back here. Although you have nothing to lose, you have failed each time. It certainly seems like there is something you have been missing, son. Perhaps it is my assistance."

Draco sat back down, took another sip of his coffee and waited for his father to continue. It was true, he had no idea why he kept returning here, and at this point, any help would be welcome.

As he shook his father's hand on the train platform, Draco felt a sense of pride. His father had convinced him that not only could the Malfoy's single-handedly bring down Voldemort, and his father realize his dream of becoming Minister of Magic, but Draco could get the girl too. All he needed to do was lay low for a few weeks, not cause any suspicion, and sneak Rowena Ravenclaw's diadem out of the Room of Requirement.

He sat with the Slytherins just to lay low. His heart went out to Hermione being teased in a carriage near the front of the train, but he told himself that these events needed to play out in order for all of them to have a much safer existence. He needed to remain calm, in control of his Occlumens abilities so that neither Dumbledore nor Voldemort would know what the Malfoy's were up to.

When the train stopped, and the students disembarked, Draco moved away from the group of would-be Slytherins and drifted up towards a dark-haired boy, a red head, and a girl with bushy brown hair. They were staring at the castle. Draco noticed how small they were. It was hard to remember that he was supposed to be eleven, and that his friends were young, new, and scared. He thought for a moment on how best to approach his best friend, the love of his life, and Ron. That whole business with being a seer last time wouldn't work; he would draw too much attention to himself. Maybe it would be best to just be friendly. "Pretty incredible isn't it?" Draco asked.

"It's brilliant," Harry responded.

"It sure is. I'm Draco by the way," Draco said with a smile.

"I'm Harry."

"Aren't you a Malfoy?" Ron asked.

"As much as you are a Weasley," Draco responded as he offered his hand.

Ron paused a moment, then shrugged and took Draco's hand and shook it resolutely.

Draco turned to Hermione and gave her a big smile. "Hi, I'm Draco Malfoy," he said.

Hermione looked him up and down before saying, "Hermione Granger," and shaking his hand in a no-nonsense fashion.

Draco remembered Hermione telling him that she thought he was cute the first time she saw him, so he took the opportunity to hold on to her hand for a moment longer than she expected. She looked into his eyes and blushed involuntarily. _There we go_, Draco thought as he released her hand and started to queue with the other first years down to the boats.

_"What's this?"_ the Sorting Hat said when it was placed on Draco's head. _"You can not hide your thoughts from the Sorting Hat. Everything you are, have done, and could achieve is open to me. Interesting, I see that you have been here before, although I have never sorted you. You are young, though you contain the memories of someone much older that has known and lost a great love. You know you are destined for greatness, and you are ready for battle. You are cunning, and smarter than most. You care about your friends and family before yourself. You exhibit the characteristics of each house, Sorting you is a challenge indeed."_

"Gryffindor," Draco whispered.

_"Oh, Gryffindor is it? Is that part of your plan, or are you worried about your friends? True friends do not care where you are sorted."_

"Gryffindor, please," Draco whispered. "You have to sort me there if I ask for it."

_"Ah, well if you are so sure," _the Hat said to Draco before exclaiming, "Gryffindor!"

Draco paid no attention to the silent crowd as he made his way to the Gryffindor table. Professor Dumbledore started clapping, and it reached the level of "polite" by the time Draco sat down next to Hermione.

"Hello," Draco said to Hermione, who shifted nervously in her seat. "Do you mind if I join you?"

"Certainly," Hermione said shyly as she looked away from his piercing gaze.

_OK, back off Casanova, _Draco thought to himself, _She's not even twelve._

Draco casually looked back at the podium as McGonagall called out Pansy Parkinson. The dark-haired girl sat on the stool as the professor placed the Sorting Hat on her head. In the moments before the Hat spoke, Pansy stared right into his eyes with terror. He understood instantly. Here was his childhood friend, knowing that she was going to be sorted into a different house, and they would never be the same to each other again. Draco watched her heart break as she was sorted into Slytherin. In that moment he realized that he had forgotten all about Pansy, what they meant to each other throughout their childhood, and how once he was sorted into Gryffindor, they never really spoke again.

In that moment, he noticed a movement off to the left of the head table. Professor Quirrell was sneaking out the side door.

_Did I drop my guard? Did Quirrell or Voldemort learn of our plan? _Draco was at a loss for what to do next when he felt an assault. Two very powerful Legilimens were trying to enter his thoughts at the same time. He looked up and saw both Snape and Dumbledore staring at him, and in a moment, they both turned and rushed out the side door after Quirrell.

_They know it's Voldemort_, Draco realized as he jumped up from the table and bolted after them, wand in hand.

"Mr. Malfoy!" Professor McGonagall shouted imperiously as he escaped out the side door.

The door from the Great Hall opened into a hallway that lead towards the Hospital wing. In the distance, Draco could see flashes of light as spells flew back and forth. After the first turn, he saw his godfather leaning against the wall, motioning for Draco to stop.

"What are you doing out here, get back!" Snape hissed.

"I have to help," Draco said. "This is my fault."

"I have no idea what you think you'll be able to do in a situation like this, boy, so get back to the Great Hall before I put an Imperius Curse on you and send you back myself," Snape hissed again.

"Listen, Half-Blood Prince," Draco hissed back as he pushed Snape into the wall, "I don't have time to argue, this is all going tits up. Dumbledore can't kill Quirrell, if he does we'll have a much larger problem on our hands."

At that moment, they both saw the sickening green flash of the Killing Curse, and all went silent.

"No!" Snape and Draco shouted in unison as they ran around the next bend. Albus Dumbledore was standing over the crumpled form of Quirrell, and a misty-shrouded black form was rising from the corpse.

"Stop him, it's Voldemort!" Draco shouted to the Headmaster, but it was too late. The dark figure passed through Dumbledore and the old wizard collapsed to the floor.

Snape pushed himself in front of Draco as the form of the Dark Lord floated silently by and out of sight. They both stood still for a moment reeling from the shock.

"Tell me what you know," Snape shouted.

"But Dumbledore," Draco said quietly as he looked at the form of the old man lying on the ground.

"Tell me what you know!" Snape repeated.

"Voldemort is probably going to the Room of Requirement. That is where Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem is hidden, and it is one of his seven Horcruxes," Draco said flatly. "If we hurry, we might be able to hurt him, but no matter what, he has six others." The look that Snape gave him was one of simultaneous disbelief, panic, urgency, and gratitude. Draco knew everything that must be going on in the spy's mind, and that he was processing all the options and outcomes. "You can't go after him, Professor," Draco said. "This is my fault, and I can't explain why, but I have to be the one to face him in order to fix it."

"Draco, don't be foolish, you're not some ridiculous chosen one," Severus said.

"Actually, Professor, this time I am. Harry Potter, the son of your one true love, Lily Evans, is the one destined to bring about the downfall of Tom Riddle, but that is going to happen in a different time and a different place. I'm screwing all this up, and I have to fix the here and now." Draco stood up as tall as his eleven-year-old body would allow. "Go to the entrance of the Room of Requirement and wait there, play your part as the Dark Lord's agent. Stall him as long as you can, I think we will have a while before he is able to regenerate himself or whatever the Hell a Horcrux does. I have one thing to do before I join you." With that, Draco gave the completely bewildered professor a sharp pat on the shoulder and turned to face the door behind him. "Fuck it," he said to himself.

There was a collective intake of breath as Draco reentered the Great Hall. As the serious boy walked determinedly towards the Gryffindor table, Professor McGonagall called out his name. She and the other professors had been keeping order in the few minutes since Draco, Dumbledore and Snape left.

"Mr. Malfoy! A word please," the professor shouted.

"I don't have time Professor, sorry," Draco said calmly and with a smile as he walked past her.

'You don't have time?" she asked in disbelief. "I demand to know what is going on!"

Draco approached the table as he answered her question, "Let's see, I just have a quick errand to run to save everyone here from a hellish nightmare right after I do this," and with that, Draco bent down and gently took Hermione Granger's hand.

Hermione stood up, embarrassed and amazed at the confidence of this eleven-year-old. He looked into her eyes with something she couldn't quite understand but she knew he was looking into her soul. He hypnotized her with his gaze, and she was helpless.

"Hermione," Draco said quietly. "You're not going to understand any of this, but before I go, I want to just tell you that you are beautiful. You have more magical ability than anyone in this room, and being Muggle born just makes you all the more fantastic. I don't know what is going to happen after I leave this room, but I want to give you this," and with that, Draco pulled her closer and gave her the most gentle, sincere first kiss in the history of Hogwarts.

Hermione froze with her eyes closed even after Draco backed off and walked away. The whole room froze, and he strode confidently past his classmates and professors on the way to the main doors of the Hall. No one said a word, and finally as the door closed behind him, he heard a distant McGonagall call, "Mr. Malfoy! Please!" as the great door slammed behind him.

He jogged up the stairs towards the Room of Requirement, knowing that he needed some sort of plan for this suicide mission. Should he face Voldemort alone, ask Snape to use the killing curse on him now? As he finally reached the seventh floor, a thought hit him.

_What happens here when I leave? Does everything reset, or are people left to the consequences I set in motion?_

His heart sank at the thought. If the other timelines he'd been in had continued, had his friends won? Lost? Died or been enslaved by Voldemort? He realized that he would never know.

_Have I been making things worse by trying to fix them?_

"Dobby!" he called out, realizing that there was some shred of hope left.

The House-elf appeared instantly by his side.

"Dobby where are the other Horcruxes that Mother and Father were looking for?" Draco asked frantically as they both approached the figure of Professor Snape, who was standing guard outside the Room of Requirement.

"Except for the cup in the Lestrange's vault, and the Boy-who-lived, they are all in your father's study," Dobby answered.

Draco approached Professor Snape. "There are a few things I need to tell you in order for you to survive, and save the Wizarding World. First, Voldemort has six Horcruxes. One in this room, four in my Father's study, one in the Lestrange's vault, and Harry Potter. You need to figure out how to destroy them all with something like Fiendfyre, or Gryffindor's sword dipped in the blood of the Basilisk that lives in Salazar Slytherin's chamber underneath Hogwarts. Harry is a Parseltongue, and can open the chamber by saying "open" in Parselmouth to the hand washing station in the center of the first floor girl's washroom. Look for a weird faucet, you'll figure that out, but be careful because that Basilisk is a bitch. Destroy all the Horcruxes except one, and then get Voldemort to kill Harry. I know it sounds completely fucked up, but that's the trick. Now I have to try and destroy this Horcrux and Voldemort and make this all go away. If I don't, at least you two can make a difference," Draco finished as he patted Dobby on his head and stood in front of the Room of Requirement.

"What is young Master going to do?" Dobby asked.

"I'm going to burn him up. You two have to stay here and watch the door," Draco said. "If he comes out, Dobby, I want you to make sure and save Snape, Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and," he paused, "Pansy Parkinson. I'm counting on you to take them somewhere safe. You have to promise."

"I promise," Dobby said solemnly.

"Professor," Draco said, turning to Snape, "I know that you want to follow me, or stop me, but you can't. I know that you can't understand everything, but you are going to have all the information now, and we can't let you be in harm's way. There is a good chance that I can fix everything, so this is my risk to take. I want you to stay out of there, are we clear?"

Snape stared down at the first year student. Although he was small, there was something adult about him that he couldn't deny. Seeing the shade of Voldemort had rocked him, and the uncertainty of Dumbledore's fate didn't help at all. The final straw was the brief glimpse into this child's mind, and seeing the bits and pieces of some future events made him want to trust this child's recommendation. He hesitantly replied, "Clear."

Draco turned to face the Room of Requirement's entrance and cleared his mind. _I need to enter the place where things are hidden,_ he thought as he paced back and forth three times. The Room created a doorway, and Draco entered it without hesitation.

As the door closed behind him, Draco was already walking briskly to where he remembered finding the Diadem, figuring that would be where he would find Voldemort. He passed another giant tower of debris before he heard the moaning.

It sounded like someone in excruciating pain, and Draco smiled grimly, hoping that whatever was happening hurt Voldemort like hell. He turned the corner and saw a hunched, naked figure, and instantly shouted, _"Avada Kedavra!"_

The bolt of green light rebounded off the grotesque figure, and exploded the top of a nearby pile of junk, sending a couch and several empty cages tumbling down the slope. _Well, that's not going to work_, Draco thought.

"Fool!" the hunched figure of Voldemort hissed.

Draco turned his lip up in disgust at the hunched naked figure staring at him. "You are seriously deranged, you know that?"

Voldemort started to reach out his hand to Draco, when Draco held is wand aloft and cast the Fiendfyre curse. As the uncontrollable fire started pouring from his wand, he focused it on the near helpless figure of Voldemort. Initially, the flames swarmed around Draco's target, but once they reached the Diadem, still perched atop a bust nearby, the Fiendfyre started destroying it, and Voldemort.

The screaming started and reached a high-pitched shriek, as Draco felt the heat like a blast furnace. Soon Voldemort was completely engulfed in fire, as well as the articles around him. Draco watched as the piles of items that past Hogwarts residents wanted hidden started to catch fire. The Flames coming out of his wand were unstoppable, and Draco could only point it in different directions. Soon, everything around him was aflame, and the remains of Voldemort and the Diadem were just ash. The heat was unbearable, and the oxygen in the room almost completely gone as Draco collapsed. As he expected, the pain of the fire finally reaching him was excruciating, but there was no air left in his lungs to scream, and as things finally went dark, he remembered feeling at peace.

The red mist appeared just for a moment as Draco realized that he was floating in a black void. He imagined that he heard music in the distance, which seemed different that before. In a moment, he felt something solid under his feet. Soon a room materialized, a black and white tiled floor, high ceilings, and a single café table. As he walked further into the surreal scene, Hermione appeared at the table, smiling at him.

He recognized the scene from a date they had in Paris. Hermione was even dressed in the same blue jumper and jeans.

"Is this real?" Draco asked.

Hermione smiled, "I don't think so."

"Do you remember anything?" Draco asked as he approached her and took her hand. It was cool to the touch.

"I remember a pain in my chest, and holding you," she said as she squeezed his hand. "Then I was here. I am pretty sure I died." She motioned for him to sit at the table. "Why don't you tell me what you remember?"

Draco sat and stared at Hermione. She was beautiful, too beautiful, and pale. He realized that she must be dead, it reminded him of the story of the Resurrection Stone. She was here, but it wasn't _her_. "I remember holding you, and you dying in my arms. The Time-Turner exploded and I went back to when I was eleven, the night before we started Hogwarts. I tried and tried to make everything better, but I kept making mistakes. Things got worse, you died as a child, and so did I. Later, I realized that I didn't know what happened to the people after I left. Did they just evaporate? Did they live out different lives, or did I make things worse? I keep going back to my bedroom floor just before I go off to Hogwarts for the first time. I don't know if any of this is even happening, I mean maybe I am dead too."

"I don't think you are," Hermione said. "You seem alive to me," she said with a sad smile. "You say you keep going back to the same point? It sounds like you are trying the same program over and over."

"The same program?" Draco asked.

"It has to do with Muggle computers. The idea is that you reset to the same point to start again. It sounds like you are supposed to _do_ something, maybe differently."

Draco smiled; even here she was trying to apply her brilliance to solve problems. "I've been trying to use everything I know to stop Voldemort as soon as possible. The problem is that things happen too quickly, and I keep losing."

"I wonder if the real question is, what is winning?"

"You mean, I should let Voldemort win?" Draco asked incredulously.

"I don't think so. Not really," Hermione answered as she thought further. A glass of red wine appeared on the table and she casually took a sip.

"Where'd that come from?" Draco asked with a laugh.

"I don't know," Hermione said and laughed a little. "Tell me, do we meet here each time you…reset?"

"No, this is the first time," Draco answered. "Mostly there is just a red mist, nothingness, and I wake up on my bedroom floor. This is the first time we've talked." Draco paused. "I was going to ask you to marry me," he admitted.

"Oh Draco," Hermione said with another sad smile. "I would have said yes, a thousand times yes."

He leaned over to kiss her, but when their lips met, hers were cold. He couldn't help but pull away awkwardly.

"What happened just before you came here?" Hermione asked, changing the subject.

"I killed Voldemort in the Room of Requirement with Fiendfyre. Quirrell fought Dumbledore and died, then Voldemort went to the closest Horcrux."

"The diadem," Hermione answered. "What about the other Horcruxes?"

"My father gathered them all except for the cup, Harry, and the diadem. He was going to destroy them all at once. It seemed like a good idea at the time. I was supposed to sneak the diadem out."

"But something happened to your plan?" Hermione urged.

"I saw Pansy getting sorted, and how much she was hurt by my leaving her for Gryffindor. I dropped my guard for a second, and Quirrell, or Voldemort, saw what I knew. Then Snape and Dumbledore both invaded my mind and pulled out enough bits and pieces to know that Quirrell was Voldemort."

"Then you had to go save everyone."

"Well, I made a stop first," Draco admitted.

"Where?" Hermione asked.

"To kiss you in front of the whole school. A pretty romantic one if I do say so myself," Draco said with a smile.

Hermione fanned herself playfully. "Oh, my. In front of the whole school, you cad," she laughed. "I am sure that I was pretty embarrassed."

"Frozen is more like it," Draco said.

"Then you went and destroyed the diadem?"

"Yes, I set the whole room on fire and died in the blaze," Draco said.

"A sacrifice," Hermione said suddenly. "You sacrificed yourself and something different happened. Maybe that is the key."

"You think?" Draco asked.

"I don't know, maybe. What else do we really have to go on? We can always try again," Hermione answered. She thought for a moment, "I mean, if you come back here. I don't know if that will happen."

"Do you think I have to leave here?"

"I'm pretty sure you will," Hermione said.

"How about you hold me until I have to go?" Draco asked.

"I'd like that," Hermione said as she slid her chair next to him, put her arms around him and nestled her head into that comfortable spot on his shoulder.


End file.
